Food container for preserving freshness of food items

Abstract

The invention discloses a food container for preserving freshness of food, comprising a container body having a cavity adapted for containing food items; a lid detachably secured on the container body to close the cavity of the container; and one or more food preserving elements capable of absorbing food spoiling gas to preserve freshness of the food items. The one or more food preserving elements are disposed inside the cavity and/or into a material of the food container to preserve the food items for an extended period of time and remove odors.

What is claimed as: 
     
         1 . A food container for preserving freshness of food, the food container comprising:
 a container body having a cavity adapted for containing food items;   a lid detachably secured on the container body to close the cavity of the container; and   one or more food preserving elements capable of absorbing food spoiling gas to preserve freshness of the food items;   
       wherein the one or more food preserving elements are disposed inside the cavity releasably and/or into a material of the food container. 
     
     
         2 . The food container according to  claim 1 , wherein the food preserving element is provided in a form of a membrane comprising at least one gas absorbent capable of absorbing the food spoiling gas, the membrane is configured to releasably attached onto a lower surface of the lid or an inner surface of the cavity of the food container. 
     
     
         3 . The food container according to  claim 2 , wherein the membrane comprises a membrane substrate and the at least one gas absorbent disposed on or into the membrane substrate. 
     
     
         4 . The food container according to  claim 4 , wherein the membrane substrate comprises a nanoporous sheet-like material and the gas absorbent is applied on and/or into the sheet-like material. 
     
     
         5 . The food container according to  claim 4 , wherein the nanoporous sheet-like material is a sheet-like fabric or an activated carbon cloth. 
     
     
         6 . The food container according to  claim 4 , wherein the gas absorbent is applied by an adhesive resin to be dispersed or coated on the sheet-like material. 
     
     
         7 . The food container according to  claim 6 , wherein the adhesive resin is silicone binder. 
     
     
         8 . The food container according to  claim 2 , wherein the membrane is removably encapsulated in a casing comprising a first porous casing portion and a second porous casing portion removably engageable with the first casing portion to form the casing. 
     
     
         9 . The food container according to  claim 8 , wherein the casing further comprises one or more attaching elements for releasably attaching to the lower surface of the lid or the inner surface of the cavity of the food container. 
     
     
         10 . The food container according to  claim 9 , wherein the attaching element is selected from the group consisting of suction cup, self-adhesive and magnet, hook and bar fastener, and hook and loop velcro. 
     
     
         11 . The food container according to  claim 2 , wherein the gas absorbent includes zeolite based substance including potassium-treated zeolite, activated carbon, silica including potassium permanganated silica, or any mixture thereof. 
     
     
         12 . The food container according to  claim 1 , wherein the food preserving element is selected from at least one gas absorbent capable of absorbing the food spoiling gas, the gas absorbent being added into a plastic material useful for making the food container. 
     
     
         13 . The food container according to  claim 12 , wherein the gas absorbent is added into the plastic material in a ratio of about 0.5-10% by weight of the plastic material. 
     
     
         14 . The food container according to  claim 13 , wherein the gas absorbent is added in a ratio of about 1-5%, by weight of the plastic material. 
     
     
         15 . The food container according to  claim 12 , wherein the plastic material is thermoplastics selected from the group consisting of polypropylene resin, and monomers of di-methylterephthalate (DMT), 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol (CHDM), and 2,2,4,4-tetramethyl-1,3-cyclobutanediol (TMCD). 
     
     
         16 . The food container according to  claim 12 , wherein the food container is subject to a heating treatment for regeneration of the food container. 
     
     
         17 . The food container according to  claim 12 , wherein the gas absorbent includes zeolite based substance including potassium-treated zeolite, activated carbon, silica including potassium permanganated silica, or any mixture thereof. 
     
     
         18 . The food container according to  claim 1 , wherein the food spoiling gas is at least one selected from the group consisting of ethylene, moisture, oxygen and any combination thereof.